Framing Moments: Photography from the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts Opens at Wilkes University’s Sordoni Art Gallery on Nov. 7

by Kelly Clisham
graphic from framing moments

Framing Moments: Photography from the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts (KIA) will open at the Sordoni Art Gallery on Tuesday, Nov. 7, and run through Sunday, Feb. 4.

Framing Moments offers a distinct and inclusive overview of photography in the United States and beyond. Curated by Deborah Willis, the exhibit features selected gems from the KIA’s significant photography holdings. Works range from the mid-nineteenth century to the present and reveal how photographers can uniquely preserve moments, people and places. Expressly interested in highlighting the time in which these photographs were made and collected, Willis imagines the stories and events that encouraged KIA curators to acquire these images over the past 60 years.

This seminal exhibition includes nearly 100 photographs that juxtapose a diverse group of photographers who reveal everyday life across rural and urban communities, explore modern photographic aesthetics, document pivotal moments of social change and conflict, and present artists as both celebrities and ordinary people.

Art in Context Lecture

In connection with the exhibition, the Sordoni Art Gallery will host an Art in Context lecture, Kalamazoo: a Place, a River and Home, at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 9.

The Art in Context lecture will be presented by Mary Whalen, photographer and teaching artist at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts and the Education For the Arts program in the Kalamazoo Area Schools System.

Whalen’s photographic work is a testament to her ongoing evolution as a visual artist. This journey continually incorporates and expounds upon exploring techniques, some of which harken back to the 1800’s and the creation of photography. Through time, these techniques have been paired with new ideas and creative concepts that have added immense depth to her body of work. Whalen will discuss this evolution and body of work, which serves as a personal history of an artist, educator and member of her community and brings viewers into that life and place.

The lecture is free and open to the public with light refreshments to follow.

Framing Moments: Photography from the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts runs from Nov. 7 through Feb. 4.

The Sordoni Art Gallery is located in the Karambelas Media & Communication Center, 141 South Main Street, Wilkes-Barre.

Hours:

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays
Noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays
Closed Mondays and University holidays

For more information, visit wilkes.edu/sordoniartgallery.

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